Chinatown

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It's Sunday afternoon and I am sitting in the lobby of my hotel in Chiang Mai. I could share about my experience last night on the sleeper train to Chiang Mai, or stumbling upon a Chinese New Year parade in Chiang Mai this morning, or the challenge of finding an available hotel room in this city during the Chinese New Year. But instead I am going to save all that for my next blog entry.

For now, I am going to wrap up my experiences from the last couple of days in Bangkok, starting with the 27th...

As we did the previous day, Jonathan and I made full use of the public transporation system to get to our desired destination. On January 26, it was the railway station to get a ticket for me to Chiang Mai. On the 27th, it was the bus station for southern routes (located west of the city) to get Jonathan a ticket to Krabi. Using the sky-train, subway, and a taxi, we reached the bus station and got that squared away. From there we went directly to Bangkok's bustling Chinatown, a very festive area during this time (Chinese New Year). We spent more time walking in the street than the sidewalk since the sidewalks were so packed. I had missed Chinatown on my two previous trips to Bangkok. I'm glad I finally was able to see it.

After returning to the Rex Hotel and handling some other things, we went out for more food! I had a couple of restaurants on my list of places to check out. One of them was called Vientiane Kitchen. This restuarant is closest to Skytrain Thong Lor on a soi off Sukhumvit. The restaurant specializes in Isan food (from northeast Thailand). Isan food is stronger, more salty, sour and hot than elsewhere in Thailand. Hotter? That's saying something since Thai's love their food spicy. Vientiane has character, both in decor and entertainment (live music, dances, martial art exhibitions, etc). Jonathan and I sat on mats on a raised platform. We really had a great time at this place even though we may have been a bit too adventurous with the food selections (fried frogs and other things recommended to us by the waitress).

Later that night (11:30 p.m.), Jonathan's girlfriend Miranda arrived in town (Jonathan being the good boyfriend went to the airport to meet her and help her get settled). I had never met Miranda before so it was nice the following day to get to know her. The 3 of us hung out during the morning and early afternoon until I had to leave for the railway station. We had lunch at Le Lys (fusion of French-Thai) for another excellent meal (can you tell I like food???) I got this fried noodle dish with mixed seafood (mussels, octopus, shrimp) that was just awesome (and like $2).

Ok sorry, I gotta go!

Look! There goes Dave!

more to come tomorrow...

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Photos

Chinatown
Chinatown in Bangkok

Vientiane Kitchen Restaurant
an overall shot of the restaurant from where Jonathan and I were sitting.

Miranda and Jonathan
Miranda and Jonathan sitting in Le Lys restaurant in Bangkok

Le Lys
Overview of the interior of Le Lys restaurant

Jonathan and I at Lumphini Park
Jonathan and I at a park in Bangkok before I left for Chiang Mai

Fried noodles with seafood
Great dish at Le Lys in Bangkok (about $2)

Comments

[Tamir]

happy chinese new year to you too :-)
hi Dave, it's great reading about your adventures. i am still in phuket, drinking beer on the beach. keep having fun!